Costs and benefits of migration

A new report has suggested that immigrants from the A10 contributed more to the UK.

Immigrants from the 10 countries that joined the EU in 2004 contributed more to the UK than they took out in benefits, according to a new study.

They added £4.96bn more in taxes in the years to 2011 than they took out in public services, the report produced by University College London (UCL) found.

Campaign group Migration Watch criticised the report for what it said was a selective use of dates.

Immigration Minister James Brokenshire said it was too narrowly focused.

“It [the report] has not properly addressed the issues of the pressures of public services,” he said. “There’s things that I think rightly concern the public on access to schools, hospitals, roads, housing.”

‘Positive picture’
UCL’s report, The Fiscal Effects of Immigration to the UK, was published by the Royal Economic Society in the Economic Journal.

Comment What is not clear is whether the impact on housing is included in the methodology and there is of course the issue that as the migrant population gets older they will need to take out more resources.

The fundamental question is of course – is it really sustainable to keep boosting the population of the UK? The answer is no!